Bound Volumes, Hometown History
November 21, 2024
90 YEARS AGO
Inherited monkey characteristics are responsible for humankind’s widespread use of the telephone, radio, talking pictures, and similar inventions, Dr. Orestes Caldwell, engineer and editor, asserts. “Outstanding traits of the monkey tribe,” said Dr. Caldwell, “are love of chatter and overwhelming curiosity – traits which have carried our own evolution to its present level of civilization. Monkeys like to gather in the treetops and chatter. And today, their human descendants delight to gather in conventions, night clubs, legislatures and afternoon teas. How acute is this love of chatter on the part of humans is attested by the fact that the anthropoid home of today has invented elaborate mechanisms and systems to carry this chatter from place to place, until the present capital investment based on human chatter totals billions of dollars.” (Ed. note: Dr. Caldwell’s observation 80 years ago is reflected in our present-day “treetop chatter” via cell phone texting, twitter, e-mail, and the internet in general)
November 1934
70 YEARS AGO
The Oneonta Chamber of Commerce continued its drive yesterday to “put the spirit of Christ back in Christmas,” with judgment of paintings for the proposed Nativity Scene Creche for the Oneonta Post Office lawn. Judges were hard pressed to decide which of 16 entries would be used. The field was finally narrowed down to three. The three artists from whose work will be chosen one for display are Louis E. Chicorelli, 225 Chestnut Street; Celia Clark, Delhi, RD 2; and Martha Wadsworth, a senior at Oneonta High School. Judging the sixteen entries were David Cooper and Gabriel Harris of the Community Art Center; the Rev. Scott Farley, representing the Oneonta Rotary Club; Harold Gray of Hartwick College; Michael Lawrence and J. Herbert Dietz, Sr.
November 1954
40 YEARS AGO
A student rental house at 52 Maple Street was condemned as unsafe by city code enforcement officials Monday. It is the seventh rental house to be condemned under the city housing code in the past three months. Student tenants face eviction proceedings if the building is not brought up to code within 30 days according to Peter Friedman, city code enforcement officer. Nine students live in the building in separate rooms according to landlord Vincent Gramaglia of Morris who said he intends to comply with the city order. The violations cited by Friedman include a fire alarm and detection system not properly maintained; exit light not working; exits not properly protected by appropriate fire-rated construction; padlock devices on sleeping room doors could prevent exit from rooms; holes in walls could allow spread of fire; a cellar space used as kitchen has no fire separation from boiler; and hotplates and refrigerators are in sleeping rooms not wired for such use.
November 1984
20 YEARS AGO
Partially turning the Social Security system into a private venture is not the way to save it according to Edward Gramlich, a former governor of the Federal Reserve Board. “I frankly am suspicious that every one of you would save enough for retirement,” Gramlich told the audience at the Anderson Center for the Arts at Hartwick College. “Personally, I’m not wild about that plan,” he added. Gramlich served as chairman of the Quadrennial Advisory Council on Social Security between 1994 and 1996. However, Gramlich foresees other changes in the system. One of those changes, he suggested, would mean increasing the age at which someone retires at the same rate that life expectancy increases. Transitional funding and borrowing to keep pace with retiree entitlements won’t necessarily work. The easiest way to have our own house in order is to start balancing the budget,” Gramlich said.
November 2004
